The Bashkir breed of ducks is characterized by rapid weight gain and good egg production. Birds begin to lay eggs in the fourth month of life. Bashkir cats gain weight of three kilograms 60 days after birth. At two months of age, ducks can be sent to slaughter. If there is a pond near the walking area and if they are kept on high-quality feed, the birds practically do not get sick or die.
The history of the origin of the Bashkir duck
Bashkirs, or Bashkir ducks, are the most popular breed of poultry, bred in Russia in the early 2000s.They first appeared on the territory of the Bashkir Blagovarsky breeding poultry farm. White Peking ducks were crossed with local species and hybrids, and a new meat-egg precocious (broiler) breed was obtained.
From their Chinese relatives, the birds inherited rapid weight gain and high meat productivity. Unlike white Peking ducks, Bashkirs have more beautiful colors. The birds quickly gained popularity and are currently bred in many individual farms and large poultry farms.
Appearance and productivity of the breed
Bashkir ducks are those that have black (with a snow-white breast) or motley (white-gray-brown) plumage. The color of drakes is always more beautiful. Males have a dark head with a greenish tint, a light collar on the neck, and the plumage on the body and wings is rich brown, with white and blue-green spots. Description of the breed:
- the body is large, the wings fit tightly to the body;
- can fly;
- adult females weigh 3.7 kg, drakes - 4.1 kg;
- The chest of the Bashkirs protrudes forward;
- neck - arched, short;
- the head is small, slightly flattened;
- the beak is wide, yellowish-orange, with a marigold at the end;
- paws - widely spaced, light orange, with webs between the toes;
- waterproof plumage;
- gait is slow, rolling from side to side;
- females are very noisy, quack loudly;
- males only quietly squeak and hiss;
- Birds tolerate frost well and can move on ice and snow.
Productivity characteristics:
- early ripening;
- ducklings grow quickly, at 1.5-2 months they weigh almost 3 kg;
- dietary meat taste;
- 100 g of meat contains 2-4% fat;
- slaughter meat yield - 70%;
- Birds are sent for slaughter at 2 months;
- the meat does not have a specific smell;
- one duck can lay 210-270 eggs per year;
- the weight of one egg is 70-80 grams;
- begin to lay eggs in the fourth month of life;
- beige shell; Duck eggs taste better than chicken eggs.
Birds are bred using an incubator or a brood hen. Ducks sitting on eggs about a month. The female incubates the ducklings for 28 days. All chicks usually hatch at the same time. Small ducklings have yellow down with dark or brown spots. At 1.5-2 months, the young look like adult birds.
Varieties
Depending on the color of the plumage, Bashkir ducks come in the following types:
- colored - the color of the feathers is variegated white-gray-brown with blue and green feathers;
- black white-breasted - black plumage with a green tint on the head, dark on the back and wings, white breast;
- white (ducks are similar in color to mulards) - white color dominates in the plumage.
Advantages and disadvantages
Conditions of detention and care
Bashkir ducks can be kept in cages, pens, poultry houses, together with chickens and geese. A separate room or a separate corner is allocated for Bashkirs. It is not recommended to keep birds of different ages together. The poultry house should have doors, small windows near the ceiling, a ventilation system, and an electric light bulb at the top. The lights are turned on only in the evening during the winter.It is advisable that the daylight hours be at least 10-12 hours. All year round, the temperature in the room where the Bashkirs are kept is maintained at 14-21 degrees Celsius.
Bashkir ducks sleep on the floor (three adults per square meter), on a bed of straw. It is advisable to clean the poultry house daily. It is recommended to place nests (low boxes with straw) for females in semi-darkness. It is advisable not to install feeders and drinkers in the room where ducks sleep and lay eggs.
It is recommended to set up a fenced walking area near the poultry house. In summer, birds can stay outside all day, nibbling grass (clover, alfalfa, dandelions). It is recommended to install a feeding trough and a drinking bowl nearby on the walking area. The ducks eat the food and immediately drink water. When raising Bashkirs for meat, it is desirable that the birds have access to a body of water.
If this is not possible, you can place a wide container with clean water on the walking area.
In order to raise large and healthy Bashkirs, you need to keep the birds clean, provide them with access to a body of water and feed them at least three times a day. Bashkir ducks can be slaughtered in the second month of life.
What to feed the birds?
Bashkir ducks have a faster metabolism than chickens. Bashkirs don’t eat that much, but they gain weight well. Adult birds are fed 3-5 times a day. In the morning, the ducks are given wet mash, in the afternoon - finely chopped root vegetables (fodder beets, pumpkin, carrots) and mixed feed. In the evening - crushed grain mixtures (wheat, corn, barley, oats). During the day, birds can nibble grass (clover, alfalfa), eat insects and duckweed in a pond.
It is advisable to diversify the diet of Bashkir ducks with pharmaceutical vitamins and minerals, feed yeast, fish and meat and bone meal, chalk, salt, sand, and crushed bean grains. Birds quickly gain weight on bread and boiled potatoes. In winter, Bashkir ducks can be given finely chopped silage and hay chaff.
In addition to feed, one bird needs at least two liters of drinking water per day. Bashkirs are usually raised for up to 2-3 months and sent for slaughter. If you plan to keep ducks for breeding, then stock up on feed (root vegetables, crushed grain, mixed feed, hay) for the winter. After three months, Bashkirs, with regular meals three times a day, become very fat.
Breeding Bashkir ducks
There are three options for breeding Bashkirs: buying small ducklings at the market, hatching the eggs with a hen, or placing the eggs in an incubator. A more cost-effective method is breeding birds with the help of a female. During incubation and raising of offspring, the mother duck should be in a separate room. In a poultry house intended for raising young animals, you can install a feeder and drinker. Chicks are born on the 28th day.
In the first weeks of life, Bashkir ducklings hatched using an incubator are kept in a cardboard box in a room with an air temperature of 30 degrees Celsius. They must live separately from adult birds. Gradually the temperature is reduced to 20 degrees Celsius.
It is advisable to feed Bashkir ducklings 30 minutes after hatching. Birds can be given kefir, yogurt, crushed boiled eggs, and fresh cottage cheese. Young animals are fed 6-8 times a day.It is recommended to ensure that the food in the feeders does not sit for a long time and does not spoil.
In the second week of life, Bashkir ducklings are fed with special (starter) compound feed, wet mash of crushed grain, boiled potatoes, chopped herbs, and finely chopped root vegetables.
In good warm weather (at an air temperature of 20 degrees Celsius), growing chicks should be outside every day, nibbling grass. They can swim in a pond only after the first month of life. It is recommended that ducklings add liquid pharmacy vitamins, mineral supplements, and antibiotics to their drinking water to prevent infectious diseases.
Diseases and methods of combating them
If Bashkir ducks are provided with proper care and proper nutrition from the moment of birth and throughout their lives, they will not get sick. The main thing is that the birds are not kept on dirty bedding, and that they have access to a body of water.
The diet of ducks must include green food and finely chopped vegetables. In order to prevent digestive problems, it is recommended to give grain in crushed form.
Main diseases of Bashkir ducks and treatment:
- bacterial infections and coccidia - immediately after hatching, in the first 5 days of life, ducklings are given a solution of the drug "Trisulfone" (1 gram of medicine per liter of liquid);
- viral hepatitis - in unfavorable areas, vaccination is given on the 2nd day of life and revaccination on the 60th day;
- vitamin deficiency, lack of vitamins, slow development - from the 6th to the 10th day of life, ducklings are given the drug “Biosupervit” (1 ml of product per three liters of water);
- bacterial intestinal diseases - for ducklings from the 7th to the 15th day of life, the antibiotic “Biovit 80” is added to the wet mash once a day at the rate of 6 grams per feed for 100 chicks;
- parasites (helminths, ticks, lice) - on the 41st day of life, ducklings are given the drug “Promectin” (1 ml per liter of water).
To prevent diseases, it is advisable to carry out preventive and sanitary measures. The main thing is to keep the birds in a clean house. Before placing young animals, the room must be disinfected with bleach, washed, and whitewashed the walls with lime. It is recommended to lay only straw on the floor. It is advisable to change the litter every day. If there are rodent holes in the house, they need to be concreted. In the walking area and in the room where Bashkir ducks are kept, it is recommended to place traps for flies and ants.
